Scottish Executive

Asthma

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it plans to give to NHS boards and any other organisations in order to ensure that the prevention and treatment of asthma is accorded a priority commensurate with the number of deaths it causes each year.

Malcolm Chisholm: The care of people with asthma is primarily a matter for NHS boards, and there are no immediate plans for further guidance. However, the Executive endorses the recommendations of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network on self-management for people with asthma and is funding the Scottish Asthma Management Initiative, one aim of which is to help general practitioners to identify suitable patients and devise self-management regimes.

  The Executive also provides grant funding to the National Asthma Campaign Scotland, which works to support people with asthma and encourage them to take control of the condition.

Cancer

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has received from the National Translational Cancer Research Network (NTRAC) about any plans to extend NTRAC in order to include centres of scientific and clinical excellence based in Scotland and, if NTRAC has no such plans, what plans it has to assist patients in accessing experimental treatments and, in particular, experimental chemotherapy.

Malcolm Chisholm: The NTRAC is funded by the Department of Health in England, whose support will not extend to Scotland. However, Scotland already has established centres in translational research such as the Dundee CRC Cell Transformation Group, Glasgow CRC Beatson Laboratories and ICRF Edinburgh Medical Oncology Unit.

  All of the five Scottish Cancer Centres are actively involved in UK-wide cancer clinical trials, including those for chemotherapy. Additionally, the Scottish Cancer Therapy Network works to improve access to experimental treatments and recruitment to clinical trials.

Cancer

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the £15 million Department of Health funding for the National Translational Cancer Research Network (NTRAC), whether any funding is being made available to help patients in Scotland access experimental treatments and, in particular, experimental chemotherapy, given that the eight NTRAC research centres of excellence are all in England.

Malcolm Chisholm: NTRAC is an English initiative designed to support translational research into the prevention, diagnosis and/or treatment of cancer. NTRAC will receive £15 million over five years and will set up eight centres of excellence in England. Most of the clinical trial work that is undertaken as translational research involves small numbers of patients and is designed to address issues of drug dosing regimens and safety, rather than effectiveness of treatment.

  The main means through which the Scottish Executive supports the improvement of access to experimental treatments and recruitment to clinical trials is through the Scottish Cancer Therapy Network (SCTN). The Chief Scientist Office and the Clinical Resource and Audit Group provide more than £300,000 per year to this network. SCTN works in conjunction with the English National Cancer Research Networks under the strategic direction of the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI). The Chief Scientist Office also contributes to the costs of the NCRI.

Cancer

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-21523 by Malcolm Chisholm on 21 January 2002 and given that local management in NHS Greater Glasgow supports the use of Herceptin for the treatment of secondary breast cancer, whether this drug is currently being prescribed on the NHS to any of the patients clinically suitable for receiving the treatment and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.

Malcolm Chisholm: As stated in my answer to question S1W-21523 on 21 January 2002, NHS Greater Glasgow supports the use of Herceptin, which is a licensed medicine currently being prescribed by NHS doctors in accordance with agreed local protocols. Individual treatment decisions are agreed between clinicians and their patient and are bound by the rules of patient confidentiality.

Children's Hearings

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-20358 by Nicol Stephen on 7 December 2001, whether it plans to review the appropriateness of allowing parents convicted of abusing their children to participate in a children’s hearing.

Cathy Jamieson: We have no current plans to review the arrangements described by Nicol Stephen in his answer given to question S1W-20358 on 7 December 2001.

Dairy Products (Hygiene) (Scotland) Regulations

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-13512 by Susan Deacon on 2 March 2001, when the Dairy Products (Hygiene) (Scotland) Regulations in respect of EU Directive 92/46/EEC will be introduced.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: I am advised by the Food Standards Agency, that EU Directive 92/46/EC is currently implemented by the Dairy Product (Hygiene) (Scotland) Regulations 1995.

  The new Dairy Product (Hygiene) (Scotland) Regulations will consolidate, update and amend these regulations and these have received the necessary clearance from the commission in respect of technical standards.

  Some proposed revisions to these regulations are, however, still under consideration and await legal clarification. It is anticipated that the new regulations will be laid before the Scottish Parliament as soon as these have been addressed.

Domestic Abuse

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-18520 by Ms Margaret Curran on 9 October 2001, when it will publish its evaluation of the Zero Tolerance Charitable Trust’s "Respect" educational project.

Ms Margaret Curran: The final draft of the evaluation report has been passed to the project’s steering group for their consideration and it will be published as soon as possible thereafter.

Enterprise

Mr Duncan McNeil (Greenock and Inverclyde) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it plans to take in order to enhance the availability of venture capital.

Ms Wendy Alexander: We have been considering carefully the extent to which Scottish firms are able to access venture capital investment in the current market. It seems clear that some firms continue to face difficulties in accessing small-scale, early-stage equity, and I am announcing today our intention to set up a new venture capital fund of funds to address this equity gap. To establish this, over the next three years a total of £20 million will be made available from my department’s Regional Selective Assistance budget. The fund of funds will support a number of new private sector equity funds in Scotland making small-scale investments - mainly up to £250,000 (but up to £500,000 where justified).

Football

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-19952 by Dr Elaine Murray on 28 January 2002, when the safety improvements to the National Stadium, Hampden will be completed and when it expects a safety certificate to be issued.

Dr Elaine Murray: This is a matter for the Scottish Football Association but I understand that the safety improvements to the National Stadium, Hampden, will be completed before the end of February. Glasgow City Council will issue the safety certificate once the works have been completed to their satisfaction.

Health Technology Board for Scotland

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Health Technology Board for Scotland is a consultee in the technology appraisal process of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence and, if so, whether it is a consultee in respect of the institute's eight "fifth wave" technology appraisals.

Malcolm Chisholm: From the Fifth Wave of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) work programme, the Health Technology Board for Scotland is a full consultee on all NICE Technology Appraisal Guidance. These are due to be published by NICE after May 2002.

Health Technology Board for Scotland

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Health Technology Board for Scotland (HTBS) (a) has access to evidence submitted in respect of technology appraisals by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) and (b) contributes in any way to discussions and judgements by NICE on such appraisals; if so, why HTBS requires a further six to 10 weeks in order to produce a Comment on Technology Appraisal Guidance by NICE.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Health Technology Board for Scotland (HTBS) does not have access to all evidence submitted for NICE Technology Appraisals conducted up until the Fifth Wave of the NICE work programme, nor does it contribute to the discussions and judgements concerning these appraisals.

  From the Fifth Wave, HTBS is a full consultee on all NICE Technology Appraisal Guidance and this will reduce the timescale for HTBS Comments.

Health Technology Board for Scotland

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans the Health Technology Board for Scotland has to issue guidance on Herceptin to NHS boards prior to the publication of any National Institute of Clinical Excellence appraisal and guidelines on the drug.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Health Technology Board for Scotland (HTBS) has no plans to issue advice to NHS boards on the use of Herceptin for the treatment of breast cancer prior to the publication of the NICE Guidance.

  In line with its usual process, HTBS will issue a Comment within six to 10 weeks of the NICE Guidance, which is due in March 2002.

Health Technology Board for Scotland

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to assist patients in accessing new and experimental treatments in advance of any appraisals and guidelines on such treatments issued by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence or the Health Technology Board for Scotland.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Health Technology Board for Scotland (HTBS) provides evidence-based advice from Health Technology Assessments that take account of clinical effectiveness, cost effectiveness, organisational issues, and patient issues. This usually occurs when the product has been in general clinical use.

  HTBS also supports the Scottish Medicines Consortium, which will provide advice at the time a new medicine is marketed.

  Experimental treatments cannot be recommended until they are authorised by the Medicines Control Agency or the Medical Devices Agency.

Health Technology Board for Scotland

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-21522 by Malcolm Chisholm on 21 January 2002, why data on drugs dispensed in hospitals is not held centrally, given that a central body, the Health Technology Board for Scotland, is responsible for providing advice on the clinical and cost effectiveness of new and existing health technologies.

Malcolm Chisholm: The need to collect information on drugs dispensed in hospitals has been recognised. The Right Medicine: A Strategy for Pharmaceutical Care in Scotland , published on 4 February, gives a commitment for the Scottish Executive Health Department to explore with the Common Services Agency, the creation of a combined community and hospital medicines utilisation database.

Hospitals

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents of assaults on hospital staff have been recorded in each hospital in (a) 1999-2000, (b) 2000-01 and (c) 2001-02 to date; what initiatives it is taking to address the issue of assaults on hospital staff across Scotland, and what priority it is giving to addressing this issue.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: Data on violence and aggression towards staff is not available centrally for 1999-2000. Information for 2000-01 is currently being collated as part of the occupational health and safety minimum dataset and should be available at the end of March this year. Information for 2001-02 will be collected in late spring and is expected to be available in the autumn.

Individual Learning Accounts

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which learning providers based in Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber were recipients of Individual Learning Account payments in each of the last two years.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The following learning providers based in Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber have been recipients of Individual Learning Account payments in each of the last two years:

  2000-01

  Development Partners

  Foremost IT

  Inverness College

  Nevis Training Centre

  Strathnairn Management

  2001-02

  B.A.S.P.

  Development Partners

  Eagle Consulting

  Foremost IT

  GHMS

  Hotscot

  HTL (Highland Training Ltd)

  Inverness College

  John Rose PC

  Lochaber Business Development Services

  Moray Firth Training Group

  Nevis Training Centre

  Norcom

  Strathnairn Management.

Land Reform (Scotland) Bill

Alex Fergusson (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what protection is offered to privately operated rifle ranges and clay pigeon shoots and their surrounding danger areas within the access provisions of the draft Land Reform (Scotland) Bill.

Ross Finnie: Under section 6(f)(ii) of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill access rights would not be exercisable over land which has been developed or set out for a particular recreational purpose while in use for that purpose.

Ministerial Committees

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many Joint Ministerial Committees and Sub-Committees have been convened since July 1999, where each meeting took place, which minister attended, and what was discussed.

Patricia Ferguson: There have been two plenary meetings and 11 functional meetings of the Joint Ministerial Committee since July 1999. Further information about these meetings is contained in the following table:

  


Subject 
  

Date 
  

Venue 
  

Scottish Minister 
  



Plenary 
  

1 September 2000 
  

Edinburgh 
  

First Minister and Deputy First Minister 
  



Plenary 
  

30 October 2001 
  

Cardiff 
  

First Minister and Deputy First Minister 
  



Europe 
  

1 March 2001 
  

London 
  

Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs and 
  Deputy Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs 
  



Europe 
  

8 November 2001 
  

London 
  

No Scottish minister was able to participate 
  



Health 
  

7 April 2000 
  

Cardiff 
  

First Minister and Minister for Health and Community Care 
  



Health 
  

5 June 2000 
  

London 
  

Deputy First Minister and Minister for Health and Community 
  Care 
  



Health 
  

16 June 2000 
  

Glasgow 
  

Deputy First Minister and Minister for Health and Community 
  Care 
  



Health 
  

26 October 2000 
  

Belfast 
  

Minister for Health and Community Care 
  



Health 
  

22 October 2001 
  

London 
  

Minister for Health and Community Care 
  



Knowledge Economy 
  

11 February 2000 
  

Edinburgh 
  

First Minister and Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong 
  Learning 
  



Knowledge Economy 
  

26 May 2000 
  

Edinburgh 
  

Deputy First Minister and Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong 
  Learning 
  



Poverty 
  

9 December 1999 
  

London 
  

Minister for Children and Education and Deputy Minister 
  for Communities 
  



Poverty 
  

26 May 2000 
  

Edinburgh 
  

Deputy First Minister and Minister for Communities

Ministerial Committees

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any minister participating in a Joint Ministerial Committee has not agreed to the convening of such a meeting since July 1999.

Patricia Ferguson: Meetings of the Joint Ministerial Committee (JMC), in the appropriate functional form, are held at the request of one or more of the participating administrations. We are not aware of any occasion since July 1999 where a minister who is a member of the JMC or any of its functional groups, has not agreed to the convening of such a meeting.

Ministerial Meetings

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what official visits have been made by ministers to (a) Her Majesty's Government, (b) the Northern Ireland Assembly and (c) the National Assembly for Wales since July 1999.

Patricia Ferguson: Scottish ministers meet ministers in the UK Government and the other devolved administrations on a regular basis. No central record is kept of such meetings.

Ministerial Meetings

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what official visits it has received from (a) Her Majesty's Government, (b) The Northern Ireland Assembly and (c) The National Assembly for Wales since July 1999.

Patricia Ferguson: Scottish ministers meet ministers in the UK Government and the other devolved administrations on a regular basis. No central record is kept of such meetings.

Nursing

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money was spent by the NHS on hiring private sector nurses, midwives and health visitors in (a) 1999-2000 and (b) 2000-01.

Malcolm Chisholm: The term "hiring private sector nurses, midwives and health visitors" has been taken to mean the cost of using agency nurses in NHSScotland. In 2000-01 the cost of agency nurses was £19,028,372. Information for 1999-2000 is not available.

Police

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of police officers have not yet received protective body armour, broken down by police force area.

Mr Jim Wallace: This information is not held centrally.

Police

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when police officers who have not yet received protective body armour can expect to receive such protection.

Mr Jim Wallace: This information is not held centrally.

Police

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of police officers are currently on (a) core street shifts and (b) other administrative duties, broken down by police force area.

Mr Jim Wallace: This information is not held centrally. The deployment of police officers is an operational matter for chief constables.

Police

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions it has had with the Scottish Police Negotiation Board regarding police pay and conditions.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Police Negotiating Board operates on a UK basis. The Scottish Executive, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Scottish Police Associations are members of the Police Negotiating Board, along with their equivalents south of the Border and in Northern Ireland. The Police Negotiating Board produced Heads of Agreement on 27 December, which are now subject to consultation. There is no Scottish Police Negotiating Board.

Police

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration will be given to the recent announcements on police pay and conditions in England and Wales in its discussions with the Scottish Police Negotiation Board on police pay and conditions in Scotland.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Police Negotiating Board operates on a UK basis and is currently consulting on draft Heads of Agreement for police pay and conditions across the UK. Any recommendations which emerge will be made to Scottish ministers as well as to the Home Secretary and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. There is no separate Scottish Police Negotiating Board.

Prison Service

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many sex offenders have been released from prison without a risk assessment or appropriate consultation with the local police force having been undertaken prior to their release in the last year.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service is not aware of any sex offenders having been released from prison in the last year without a risk assessment or appropriate consultation with the local police force having been undertaken prior to their release.

Prison Service

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has received concerning any sex offenders released from prison without a risk assessment or appropriate consultation with local police forces having been undertaken; when it first received any such information, and what action it has taken in respect of this matter.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service has not received any information that any sex offender has been released from prison without a risk assessment or appropriate consultation with local police forces.

Prison Service

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken in order to track any sex offenders released from prison without a risk assessment or appropriate consultation with local police forces having been undertaken.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  Contrary to press reports I am unaware of any cases of sex offenders having been released from Scottish prisons without appropriate arrangements having been made.

Prison Service

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans there are to hold an inquiry into whether any sex offenders have been released from prison without a risk assessment or appropriate consultation with local police forces having been undertaken.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  I am unaware of any such cases.

Prison Service

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-19852 by Iain Gray on 23 November 2001, how many individuals convicted of domestic abuse-related offences took part in treatment programmes offered by the prison service in the last year for which figures are available.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

  This information is not recorded by the Prison Service.

Prison Service

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated prison populations are (a) in total and (b) broken down by each category of prisoner for each of the years (i) 2003, (ii) 2008, (iii) 2013, (iv) 2018, (v) 2023 and (vi) 2028 or, if such information is not available, what information it can provide on this matter, at proportionate cost, to show the basis of planning for prison populations over the next 25 years.

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of the estimated prison populations for each of the years (a) 2003, (b) 2008, (c) 2013, (d) 2018, (e) 2023 and (f) 2028 is expected to be serious sex offenders or, if such information is not available, what information it can provide on this matter, at proportionate cost, to show the basis of planning for prison populations over the next 25 years.

Mr Jim Wallace: The available information is given in the following table, which contains the projected prison population, disaggregated by type of prisoner. The projections do not distinguish the crimes committed by prisoners.

  Prison Population Projections, by Type of Prisoner

  


Year 
  

Remand 
  

Short-Term 
  

Long-Term 
  

Other 
  

Total 
  



1990 
  

751 
  

2,465 
  

1,484 
  

24 
  

4,724 
  



1991 
  

770 
  

2,506 
  

1,538 
  

25 
  

4,839 
  



1992 
  

876 
  

2,706 
  

1,648 
  

27 
  

5,257 
  



1993 
  

948 
  

2,868 
  

1,786 
  

35 
  

5,637 
  



1994 
  

1,015 
  

2,690 
  

1,851 
  

29 
  

5,585 
  



1995 
  

998 
  

2,635 
  

1,951 
  

42 
  

5,626 
  



1996 
  

1,000 
  

2,758 
  

2,085 
  

19 
  

5,862 
  



1997 
  

947 
  

2,751 
  

2,363 
  

21 
  

6,082 
  



1998 
  

938 
  

2,561 
  

2,498 
  

20 
  

6,017 
  



1999 
  

1,012 
  

2,488 
  

2,500 
  

29 
  

6,029 
  



2000 
  

894 
  

2,408 
  

2,535 
  

32 
  

5,869 
  



2001 (proj.) 
  

976 
  

2,615 
  

2,542 
  

31 
  

6,164 
  



2002 (proj.) 
  

985 
  

2,699 
  

2,632 
  

31 
  

6,347 
  



2003 (proj.) 
  

993 
  

2,755 
  

2,719 
  

31 
  

6,498 
  



2004 (proj.) 
  

1,000 
  

2,812 
  

2,828 
  

31 
  

6,671 
  



2005 (proj.) 
  

1,011 
  

2,875 
  

2,909 
  

31 
  

6,825 
  



2006 (proj.) 
  

1,022 
  

2,944 
  

2,991 
  

31 
  

6,987 
  



2007 (proj.) 
  

1,034 
  

3,013 
  

3,071 
  

31 
  

7,149 
  



2008 (proj.) 
  

1,045 
  

3,081 
  

3,164 
  

31 
  

7,321 
  



2009 (proj.) 
  

1,055 
  

3,145 
  

3,246 
  

31 
  

7,478 
  



2010 (proj.) 
  

1,065 
  

3,206 
  

3,320 
  

31 
  

7,623 
  



  The prison population projections, which were prepared in September 2001, are based on projecting the numbers of receptions based on trends observed over the past 10 to 18 years. These are then converted to population projections by allowing for the time spent in custody. The projections therefore assume that the trends in sentencing behaviour observed in the past will continue. Two variants for future numbers have also been prepared, based on alternative extrapolations of past trends; these are given in the following table. The prison population projections do not extend beyond 2010-11.

  Prison Population Projections to 2010-11

  


Year 
  

Lowest Variant 
  

Projections prepared in September 2001 
  

Highest Variant 
  



2000-01 (actual) 
  

5,900 
  

5,900 
  

5,900 
  



2001-02 
  

5,900 
  

6,200 
  

6,300 
  



2002-03 
  

5,900 
  

6,400 
  

6,500 
  



2003-04 
  

5,900 
  

6,500 
  

6,700 
  



2004-05 
  

6,100 
  

6,700 
  

6,900 
  



2005-06 
  

6,200 
  

6,900 
  

7,200 
  



2006-07 
  

6,300 
  

7,000 
  

7,400 
  



2007-08 
  

6,400 
  

7,200 
  

7,700 
  



2008-09 
  

6,500 
  

7,400 
  

8,000 
  



2009-10 
  

6,600 
  

7,500 
  

8,200 
  



2010-11 
  

6,700 
  

7,700 
  

8,500

Prison Service

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-22102 by Mr Jim Wallace on 21 January 2002, whether the contracting out to a specialist provider of the escorting of prisoners will result in reduction in the staffing levels of prison officers and, if so, what the projected reduction is.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

  The restructuring of prisoner escort arrangements will mean that the SPS will, over time, need about 200 fewer prison officer posts, but all our staff have been given a firm undertaking that that there will be no compulsory redundancies: any surplus staff will be suitably re-deployed.

Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to lay the order under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 imposing specific duties to promote racial equality on local authorities and other specified public bodies.

Iain Gray: We are aiming to lay the order later this month.

Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000

Mr Michael McMahon (Hamilton North and Bellshill) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will respond to the Equal Opportunities Committee’s 6th Report 2001, Consultation on the Implementation of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 .

Iain Gray: The Executive presented its response to Parliament today.

Regional Selective Assistance

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-21536 by Ms Wendy Alexander on 21 January 2002, when an offer of Regional Selective Assistance was made to Manpower plc, Selkirk; when that offer was accepted; what the total amount of the offer was, and to what conditions any payments will be subject and when they will be made.

Ms Wendy Alexander: An offer of Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) was made to Manpower in November 2000. The company has still to formally accept this offer. Details of the amount of RSA offers is made public in Labour Market Trends when the first instalment has been paid to a company; until then this remains commercially confidential. Similarly, details of the conditions attached to any offer are part of a contract between the company and the Scottish Executive and remain confidential.

Rural Stewardship Scheme

Mr Andrew Welsh (Angus) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of this year’s budget for the Rural Stewardship Scheme has not been allocated and what will happen to this money.

Ross Finnie: All of the funding available this year for agri-environment schemes, including the Rural Stewardship Scheme has been allocated.

Rural Stewardship Scheme

Mr Andrew Welsh (Angus) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the applications to join the Rural Stewardship Scheme this year did not match the funding criteria.

Ross Finnie: Three hundred and eighty of the 476 eligible applications submitted this year were accepted for funding. Applications were assessed against published ranking criteria and the applications which provided the most environmental benefit were funded.

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the maps drawn up by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to show potential nitrate vulnerable zones are satisfactory.

Ross Finnie: Maps of the proposed nitrate vulnerable zones have been produced by the Scottish Executive using catchment boundaries generated by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, in collaboration with the British Geological Survey. The maps are based upon an Ordnance Survey 1:10,000 digital backdrop, rescaled to 1:25,000 and provide the detailed information which farmers will need to see whether individual fields fall within the proposed nitrate vulnerable zones. Copies of the maps are held by local Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department offices and are available for inspection during normal office hours.

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it took to confirm that the Scottish Environment Protection Agency defined its proposed nitrate vulnerable zones in accordance with the criteria set out by EU Council Directive 91/676/EEC.

Ross Finnie: EU Council Directive 91/676/EEC (the Nitrates Directive) requires that member states shall designate as vulnerable zones all known areas of land which drain into waters affected by pollution and which could be affected by pollution (identified in accordance with criteria set out in Annex I of the directive) and which contribute to pollution.

  The proposed new groundwater nitrate vulnerable zones described in the consultation paper Protection of Scotland's Water Environment have been identified by the Scottish Executive on the basis of the criteria set out at Annex IA(2) of the directive, i.e. that the groundwaters of the proposed zones contain more than 50mg/litre nitrates or could contain more than 50 mg/litre nitrates if action programme management measures are not taken. The proposals are based on analysis of water, quality data from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s monitoring network and other sources and supporting research commissioned from the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute and the British Geological Survey.

Scottish Executive Staff

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many staff it has seconded to (a) the European Union and (b) Her Majesty's Government, indicating the institution and department respectively in each case both (i) in this year and (ii) in each of the last three years.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested can be found in the following tables. Movements between the Scottish Executive and Departments of Her Majesty’s Government are loans and not secondments.

  Secondments to the European Union:

  


European Commission Directorate-General: 
  

1999 
  

2000 
  

2001 
  

2002 
  



Agriculture 
  

1 
  

2 
  

1 
  
 



Competition 
  
 
 
 

1 
  



Education and Culture 
  
 

1 
  
 
 



Employment and Social Affairs 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 
 



Energy and Transport 
  

2 
  

1 
  

2 
  

1 
  



Enterprise 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 
 



Environment 
  

2 
  

2 
  

4 
  

2 
  



Fisheries 
  

1 
  

2 
  
 

1 
  



Health and Consumer Protection 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 
 



Justice and Home Affairs 
  
 
 

1 
  

1 
  



Legal Service 
  
 

1 
  
 
 



Regional Policy 
  

1 
  
 

1 
  

1 
  



Secretariat General/Parliamentary Affairs 
  
 

1 
  
 
 



Trade 
  
 
 

1 
  

1 
  



Kinnock Cabinet 
  

1 
  
 
 
 



Totals 
  

11 
  

13 
  

10 
  

8 
  



  Loans to Departments of Her Majesty’s Government:

  

 

1999 
  

2000 
  

2001 
  

2002 
  



Cabinet Office 
  

5 
  

6 
  

5 
  

6 
  



Department of Trade and Industry 
  
 
 

1 
  

1 
  



Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
  

1 
  
 
 
 



Food Standards Agency London 
  
 
 

1 
  

1 
  



Foreign and Commonwealth Office 
  

3 
  

3 
  

8 
  

6 
  



Forestry Commission 
  

4 
  

3 
  

2 
  

2 
  



HM Treasury 
  

2 
  

3 
  

6 
  

5 
  



Home Office 
  

4 
  

4 
  

3 
  

1 
  



Office of Fair Trading 
  
 

1 
  

1 
  

1 
  



OFSTED 
  

1 
  

1 
  
 
 



Prime Minister’s Office, Downing Street 
  
 

1 
  

1 
  

1 
  



Totals 
  

20 
  

22 
  

28 
  

24

Social Work

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive when the January 2002 edition of its statistical bulletin in the Social Work Series on Staffing will be produced.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Statistical Bulletin "Staff of Scottish Local Authority Social Work Services, 2001" will be published in August 2002.

  The previous bulletin, relating to staff at October 2000, was published in August 2001. This is available at:

  www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/bulletins/00106-00.asp

  and is also available from the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 19002).

Tourism

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the effect a tourism tax would have on tourism numbers and the industry in general.

Mike Watson: None.

Waste Management

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive on what grounds it agreed to Aberdeenshire Council’s application to develop a waste transfer site in Stonehaven.

Ms Margaret Curran: The proposal was in line with the development plan for the area and the relevant national planning policy guidelines. There was therefore no justification for the Scottish ministers to intervene in this case.

Waste Management

Ben Wallace (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has received about any previous pollution problems at the proposed waste transfer site in Stonehaven.

Ms Margaret Curran: In determining this notified planning application, the Scottish Executive was made aware of certain pollution issues associated with other activities on the Spurryhillock industrial estate. However, we are satisfied that the operation of the new waste transfer facility will be strictly controlled in accordance with a waste management licence issued by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.